Geographic Range
Found in the tropical forest canopies of Central America and northern South America, including portions of Brazil and Peru.
- Biogeographic Regions
- neotropical
Habitat
Choloepus didactylus is strictly arboreal, staying high in the canopy of the tropical rain forests, and maintaining a range of about 10-acres.
- Terrestrial Biomes
- rainforest
Physical Description
Two-toed sloths have been called the slowest animals on earth. Ranging in length from 21 to 29 inches, Choloepus didactylus is roughly the size and shape of a small dog. The body is composed of a short neck (only 6-7 vertebrae) with four long limbs of equal length, ending in two curved claws. The head is short and flat, with a snub nose, rudimentary ears, and large eyes.
Choloepus didactylus are covered in long brownish-grey hair that curves from stomach to back, opposite that of most mammals. A unique feature of this fur is that each strand has grooves which collect algae, giving the sloth a greenish tint and camouflaging it from predators.
The teeth of the two-toed sloth are small, simple molars that are continously growing but constantly ground down by the mastication of food. To compensate for a lack of sharp teeth, Choloepus didactylus has hardened lips which act to shear and crop leaves.
- Other Physical Features
- endothermic
- bilateral symmetry
Reproduction
Females of this species of sloth reach sexual maturity at 3 years of age, males reach sexual maturity between 4 and 5. After a gestation period of six months, females give birth to one offspring each year. When the young are born they are 10 inches in length and weigh 12 ounces. They cling to their mother's belly for 5 weeks until they have the strength to move on their own.
- Key Reproductive Features
- gonochoric/gonochoristic/dioecious (sexes separate)
- sexual
Lifespan/Longevity
Behavior
Sloths move slowly and deliberately. They spend most of their life hanging upside-down from tree branches, whether sleeping, eating, mating, or giving birth. They descend to the ground only to change trees (food source) or to defecate. They have a low metabolic rate and defecate only once each week. Food remains in their relatively short digestive tract for approximately one month. Choloepus didactylus can move around quite well in the trees (125 feet per day), but are significantly less mobile on the ground, dragging their body across the ground. Sloths are also good swimmers, having a streamlined body and fur that has evolved for wet, tropical weather.
These sloths are primarily nocturnal, sleeping for 15 hours during the day, and waking during the night only to feed. The sloths eat by grasping vegetation with one foot and pulling it to their mouths.
Two-toed sloths are well camouflaged in tree canopies. Their most common resting position is curled into a ball in the branches of a tree and resembles either a termite nest or a knot in the wood. This, combined with the green color of their fur, makes for great protection from predators. Sloths have been known to defend themselves with their claws and teeth, but they are usually quite docile, relying primarily on camouflage to protect them. Two-toed sloths are also mostly silent, but can let out hisses and low cries or moans if distressed.
Choloepus didactylus are relatively solitary mammals. Groups of females sometimes occupy the same tree, and young may inherit the home range of their parents.
Communication and Perception
Food Habits
Choloepus didactylus feed primarily on vegetation, including berries, leaves, small twigs, and fruits, cropping the leaves with their lips. On occasion sloths have been known to eat insects and other small prey. They obtain water from vegetation and by lapping dew.
Economic Importance for Humans: Positive
Two-toed sloths are a valuable food source and are often hunted for their meat.
Economic Importance for Humans: Negative
There is no direct negative effect of sloths on humans.
Conservation Status
Two-toed sloths are in serious danger of losing their habitat due to logging of rain forests. Aside from captive animals, this is the only area in the world in which this species lives. Several organizations are currently working to protect these areas.
Other Comments
Average life span of two-toed sloths is 20 years in the wild, ages of 30 to 40 years have been recorded in captivity.
Additional Links
Contributors
Ali Felton-Church (author), University of Michigan-Ann Arbor, Phil Myers (editor), Museum of Zoology, University of Michigan-Ann Arbor.
- Neotropical
-
living in the southern part of the New World. In other words, Central and South America.
- native range
-
the area in which the animal is naturally found, the region in which it is endemic.
- rainforest
-
rainforests, both temperate and tropical, are dominated by trees often forming a closed canopy with little light reaching the ground. Epiphytes and climbing plants are also abundant. Precipitation is typically not limiting, but may be somewhat seasonal.
- arboreal
-
Referring to an animal that lives in trees; tree-climbing.
- nocturnal
-
active during the night
- motile
-
having the capacity to move from one place to another.
- sedentary
-
remains in the same area
- solitary
-
lives alone
- threatened
-
The term is used in the 1994 IUCN Red List of Threatened Animals to refer collectively to species categorized as Endangered (E), Vulnerable (V), Rare (R), Indeterminate (I), or Insufficiently Known (K) and in the 1996 IUCN Red List of Threatened Animals to refer collectively to species categorized as Critically Endangered (CR), Endangered (EN), or Vulnerable (VU).
- endothermic
-
animals that use metabolically generated heat to regulate body temperature independently of ambient temperature. Endothermy is a synapomorphy of the Mammalia, although it may have arisen in a (now extinct) synapsid ancestor; the fossil record does not distinguish these possibilities. Convergent in birds.
- bilateral symmetry
-
having body symmetry such that the animal can be divided in one plane into two mirror-image halves. Animals with bilateral symmetry have dorsal and ventral sides, as well as anterior and posterior ends. Synapomorphy of the Bilateria.
- sexual
-
reproduction that includes combining the genetic contribution of two individuals, a male and a female
- tactile
-
uses touch to communicate
- chemical
-
uses smells or other chemicals to communicate
References
Henson Robinson Zoo Education Department, October, 1997. "Two-Toed Sloth (Choloepus didactylus)" (On-line). Accessed November 15, 1999 at http://www.hensonrobinsonzoo.org/a001.html .
Klein, L. ""Easy Does It" For the 2-Toed Sloth" (On-line). Accessed November 15, 1999 at http://www.calnative.com/n_sloth.htm .
Parker, S. 1990. Grzimek's Encyclopedia of Mammals, Volume 2 . McGraw-Hill Publishing Company.
"Sloth-The Mammal" (On-line). Accessed November 15, 1999 at http://www.geocities.com/EnchantedForest/Dell/5094/SlothMammal.html .